After Effects
by Lilas
Summary: After Crimson Youth (aka The Abel Movie), you can't help but wonder just how the heck they got out of that big rock...


Disclaimer

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Saint Seiya...

Seiya: Good!

Author's note: First of all, it took me 2 WEEKS to write this fic... Simply because I'm writing four fics at the same time -_-;; Anyway, if in any part of this you think it's yaoi, it's not. I did not write it to be taken that way, and I'm sorry if your minds look for something that isn't there... And if people call me homophobic, then go read my two Yaoi fics!! Anyway, that said, I hope you enjoy this little snip bit and if you want to take this fic to post it anywhere on the web, please ask me first (that includes my friends...) Thanx a bunch, and enjoy!!

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After Effects

By Lilas (the Great ^-^)

Pain seared through me as I lay in her arms, my chest heaving as I forced it to breathe in the dirty air around me. I could feel the crumbling of the columns all around me, and smiled, wondering how the hell we were gonna get out of that one… It wasn't uncommon that we ended up stranded in the middle of crumbling rocks, but this was too much.

Even though I couldn't see anything beyond my peripheral vision, I knew we were in trouble. I could tell by the sounds around me that we stood on a platform high in the sky and that everything around us was most likely crumbling, if not destroyed… I could feel through my cosmo that Shun and Ikki were next to each other, probably supporting each other and drained from the battles. Hyoga and Shyriu stood on each side of me, watching the scene around them while I rested on Saori's lap, drained and broken from fighting Abel.

I didn't think I'd be able to move if needed be. My ribs were on fire and my whole body ached as I tried to stay conscious, even for a little longer.

"We should get out of here," Ikki's harsh voice spoke softly from where he stood, hugging his younger brother.

"Seiya, can you stand up?" Shyriu's concerned voice spoke from next to me.

Glancing sideways, I could see his blurry form, watching me intently, waiting for an answer. I knew I was a horrible liar, but the urge to make them feel better, to make them think I was okay was stronger than I could bear and I slowly nodded my head, pushing the pained scream aching to come out from my mouth.

I took in a deep breath and slowly pushed myself off of Saori's comforting lap, wincing as I stood on my legs. Instinctively, my hand rushed to my chest to support it as my ribs sent a white blinding pain through my body. I suppressed the horrid feeling with a small smile as Shyriu's skeptically looked at me. All I wanted at that moment was for him to buy my farce.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Hyoga asked as he approached me.

Being the youngest in a 'family' of ten can really be the pits sometimes… Especially if you're the one that ended up fighting all the Gods and getting yourself bashed up to a pulp. After awhile, they ended up knowing how bad you're beaten and then nothing could be hidden anymore. 

"I'm… fine, Hyoga," I told him through clenched teeth, my smile never leaving my face, although I suspected it was becoming more of a grimace.

"You don't look it, chump. Take your armor off," Ikki commanded as he too came to stand next to me.

I gulped softly at his words. Now I was screwed. The armor was the only thing allowing me to stay standing and somewhat make the pain go away. I sighed, lowering my head as I increased my cosmo to summon it away, knowing very well that now the lie was no longer going to work.

As I felt the armor leaving me, I started feeling the various parts of my body come alive and scream throughout me from the various injuries. My legs gave out under me and a scream left my lips as my ankle burnt. Before I hit the ground, I felt a pair of strong arms grab me from under my shoulders and lift me up slowly.

"Fine, huh? When will you stop lying to us, Seiya?" Ikki asked, anger and deception burning in his voice.

"I… I'm sorry guys," I replied as he draped my right arm behind his neck to support me. "I just don't want you to be worried…"

"Seiya… How can we not?" Hyoga asked as he approached me and took my other arm slowly as a winced at his movement. "After all, you did just go up against Abel by yourself…"

"Yeah, but you guys are injured too. I just don't want you guys to get yourselves even more hurt because I can't keep myself from getting bashed!" I yelled, closing my eyes and trying to ignore the pain running through me while hiding my tears at the same time.

"Hey… We're fine. We can still stay standing without our armor… Now stop worrying about us and start worrying about how we're gonna get out of here with you in the condition you're in. Now, where are you hurting?" Shyriu's calm voice spoke as he stood in front of me, his hands resting on my shoulders.

Shyriu… He was my rock. It was incredible how much I depended on him for everything. Even before we found out we were brothers, we were so close… Friends forever, as some people would say. He was my one constant. Good old Shyriu never changed. Harsh when the time called it, easygoing when it was time… I still wondered how the heck we were friends with our different tastes, but I guess opposites attract. And I couldn't lie to him; not while he looked at me so intensely.

"Well… I think one or two of my ribs are cracked and my right ankle is throbbing," I stated. 

Hey, I couldn't lie to him, but that didn't mean I had to tell him the whole truth! Like that my wrist was probably broken too, that my stomach was twisting in my gut, that my head felt as if a train were passing over it and that my legs were going to give out under me at any second… Nope, didn't need to tell him those things at all...

"Are you sure that's all? If we let you walk by yourself, will you be able to?" he asked, his eyes frowning as he sensed I was in worst shape then I let on.

Oooh! Tricky question! Would I be able to walk without their help? Think fast Seiya! Not only were they staring at you but the platform you're standing on was not going to hold out much longer!

"No, I don't think I'd be able to," I finally mumbled.

"Good, so you have some decency to tell us you aren't telling us the whole story," Shyriu continued, his voice low and dangerous.

I sighed softly, dropping my head at their exasperated glares. Out of the corner of my eyes, I spotted Saori, smiling that sweet smile of hers, warming me up from head to toe. When will I finally confess my feelings for her? It'd become so obvious to everyone else that we were constantly flirting with each other, but I couldn't forget who she was… She was Athena, one of the three Virgin Goddesses of Olympus, and I didn't even know if she was allowed to even fall in love!! 

I sighed again, figuring I should probably try to deal with the death glares my brothers were throwing at me first. I was trapped now... They knew I wasn't telling them the whole truth about my injuries, but now really wasn't the time to think about them. After all, we were standing on a crumbling platform several feet into the air that was going to give out under us at any moment and send us tumbling to our deaths!

"Guys... Can we leave it for later? We kinda don't have time..." I begged, looking around me and watching as they did the same.

"Fine Seiya... We're letting you off the hook, for now... But once we're on steady ground again, you will give us a full analysis of your injuries," Shyriu's low, and deadly voice whispered in my ears sending chills down my back.

Getting Shyriu pissed at you was the last thing you wanted to do in your life... The guy could be really scary at times with his gray eyes burning with rage behind them as they slanted slightly with the movement of his eyebrows as those knitted together in a deep frown... Not to mention his voice dropped several octaves, sending chills down your spine from the scary effect they brought you... All in all, not a pretty sight. 

I felt my brothers' hold on my wrists increase and it took all my willpower not to shout out as my left wrist suddenly exploded in a jet of hot pain... Unfortunately, a weak, almost inaudible moan escaped my closed lips as my eyes shut tightly. Hyoga immediately realized my reaction to his tightening and released some of the pressure he had applied to my broken wrist.

"It's broken..." he whispered to the others.

A heard a couple of sighs from them and lowered my head, a bit ashamed... I was just making this harder... I summoned my cosmo and, as the golden light indicating as I was calling on my seventh sense increased around me, the Sagittarius armor encased me once more.

"It... It'll be less painful..." I mumbled, my head still lowered in order for my bangs to cover my eyes.

They must have agreed with me since none of them replied to my comment or oredered me to take it off. Hyoga once more applied pressure on my wrist as he tightened his hold, but this time, the pain was a small throb, something I could easily ignore now that the armor protected my beaten body... It was a miracle I didn't have any scars on me from all the battles I'd staged... Well, almost no scars if you didn't count the one I kept hidden under my red armband, forever burying under it a time, an event I wished to forget...

"What are we gonna do?" Shun asked as he stood next to his brother, his voice shaking as the platform crumbled.

"We could teleport..." Shyriu suggested. But I could hear the doubt in his voice.

He knew Saori would need assistance in teleporting since she'd only recently been working on it, and he most likely doubted I could handle it... I probably could, but I didn't think I'd be in too good a shape afterwards... Teleporting needed balance between the mind and the body, and balance was the last thing I had right now... But that was the only solution I could see to get us out of the mess we were in... Unless we jumped the rocks.

"We could just rock hop around..." Hyoga suggested as if reading my thoughts.

"Out of the question," Shyriu instantly replied, his brows furring. "Teleportation is our only way out..."

"But... It's too dangerous, Shyriu," Shun whispered, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, I can take it," I interjected, pushing Ikki and Hyoga away from me and standing on my feet by myself. "With the armor, I should be able to do it no problem..."

"Seiya..." Ikki's warning voice spoke for all my brothers.

"I'm not lying! I can do it with the armor! And I can even carry Saori..." 

Oops! Shouldn't have said that! I could feel a deep blush covering my cheeks as she stared at me, her face most probably as red as mine... Sure, why didn't you just shout out to the world that you're desperately in love with the Virgin Goddess you were supposed to be protecting?! That way, you could be added to Zeus' list of 'People to kill'! Sometimes I wondered if I was stupid by nature or if I did it on purpose...

"I'll carry Athena-sama, Seiya... You just concentrate on staying conscious," Hyoga replied, a knowing smile on his face as my blush returned with a vengeance.

I nodded dumbly, not sure what was happening around me as I concentrated my cosmo around myself. In my head, I pictured Saori's mansion, its gigantic marble white walls concealing the beauty that hid inside it. I saw the green gardens surrounding it, always green no matter the season as they were kept alive by her loving cosmo, giving them life and the sun they needed to survive through the cold winter days... Then I saw my room in that big white house; my ceiling decorated by glow in the dark stars forming the different constellation in the sky, my walls decorated with posters about the sea, the sky... Photographs of Miho and my family in picture frames on my nightstand, my blue covers draping my bed...

I sensed my cosmo increasing and I suddenly felt at peace with myself, my body and my mind connected to each other for this spilt second as I continued to picture every single detail of my room, a warmth spreading through me and in a second, it was gone and under me I could feel something soft and comforting, and, over taken by exhaustion, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

***

The sun's warmth on my face was the first thing I felt as I slowly regained consciousness... Pain was the second thing. I shut my eyes tight against the feelings coursing through me and slightly shifted my position on what I was laying on. I felt a hand on my hair and, forcing my eyes open, I focused my vision on a pair of smiling gray eyes...

Saori?

"You gave us quite a scare," the person's voice spoke to me.

Waittasec... Saori's voice was higher than that! I started as recognition sank in and I pulled myself to a seating position, immediately regretting my sudden movement. I felt the same pair of hands rest on my shoulders, pushing me back down... I blushed deeply, embarrassed I had mistaken Shyriu for Saori... I really should pay more attention when thinking about her... Next thing you know I'll be calling Shyriu Saori just by looking at his eyes! 

I sighed softly allowing the softness of my mattress comfort my aching muscles, my head flopping down on my pillows. I forced my eyes to remain open, but I couldn't help the yawns escaping my mouth. I closed my eyes for a little bit and when I opened them again, I saw Shyriu looking at me a bit... pissed. 

"If you'd told me all your injuries back on that rock, I would have gone with Hyoga's ideas of rock hopping! You were in no condition to teleport like you did and you could have died in the process," he started, his voice never passing a whisper. "Do you have any idea how worried we were when we found you passed out on your bed?"

Oh sure, use the guilt method! Dammit! Couldn't they ever leave me alone for one second and let me do what I wanted for once? Let me decide whether I was up to something or not, even if I were injured? They were injured too, so why the big deal over me?! Yeah, I know I fought a God and got my ass kind of kicked, but still! I am old enough to make my own decisions!

"Sorry," I mumbled, not feeling like arguing at the moment despite the rage building in me.

Shyriu sighed softly and ruffled my hair like an older brother would and got off the chair he was seated in, exiting my room without replying to my apology. That couldn't be good. He only ignored me when he was really mad or worried, so for him to just brush me off like that must be because I really screwed up bad...

I could hear running footsteps from outside my door, and Saori's head appeared from behind it, her hair falling in front of her face as she peaked in. She gasped slightly, her eyes widening with hidden joy behind them as she ran towards me and jumped on my bed, taking me in her arms, sending me into my mattress once more.

"I was so scared!" she screamed, her voice muffled as she buried her face in my shirt between my neck and my shoulder.

Hesitantly, I brought my arms to her shoulders and hugged her to me tightly, feeling her warmth on my skin and unconsciously thinking about how nicely she fit against me... If only for one moment I could just forget she was a Goddess, that she was Athena, that I wasn't supposed to feel the way I felt for her... If only for one moment I could hold her to me and kiss her sumptuous lips... then I could die happy. But the gods did not allow me even this much pleasure, this much happiness in my life, so I just sat there, a small, sad smile on my face as I watched her sob in my arms, her tears sending shudders up and down my back as a pain I could not describe seized my heart and squeezed it tight.

How I had wished for her to be where she was at that moment... All those restless nights in which her face had haunted me, taunted me while the twinkling lights of the stars laughed at my predicament... All the times I dreamt she was in my arms, holding me tight like she was now; all those nights I fantasized about her... And now, here she was, in my arms, just as I had imagined her to be, and I, I could do nothing but watch and wish I could pour my heart to her...

"If only you knew how much I love you...." I murmured under my breath as I watched her holding me, my fingers merely inches away from her beautiful lavender hair.

Suddenly, the moment was shattered into pieces as she snapped her head up to me and stared at me with wide, disbelieving eyes; and I instantly understood what had just occurred. She'd heard me. She'd heard the words she was not supposed to have heard coming from my mouth... 

And now, no more fantasized that I could imagine would happen someday, no more dreams in which I confessed to her my love and she'd hug me back, shouting with all her might that she loved me as well... Never again... Now she'd probably send me flying out the door and unto the streets, forcing me to find a job in a world I was not ready and had not been prepared to face...

"Seiya..." she whispered softly, her hand reaching up to my cheek and drying the tears I had not realized were rolling down them.

To my surprise, she didn't sound mad, or horrified... She sounded, relieved... Through my clouded eyes, I saw her sit up in my bed and take my face in her hands, a smile on her face as tears slipped past her eyes. Slowly, she approached me and, closing my eyes, I felt her lips brush mine for a few seconds, the tears passing by my closed eyelids burning on my cheeks. 

She kissed me... She _kissed_ me! My mind was incapable of forming any coherent thought as my eyes blinked quickly, riding themselves of the last few droplets of tears that hindered my sight. The only thing I could think of at that time was,

"Why?"

"Because I have loved you since the first moment I saw you, silly..." she replied, smiling that beautiful smile of hers and caressing my cheeks, moving her hand to rest it on my hair, playing with the messy strands. 

I couldn't answer to that. I knew she had felt the same way as I, but even as I lay there, on my bed with the Virgin Goddess playing with my hair, I couldn't help but feel that it was somewhat wrong... And who was speaking? It couldn't be Athena! I mean, Athena loved that her Father more than anybody... She pledged her virginity to Him, so how could she be speaking to me... It had be Saori... It just had to be her!

"Don't worry Seiya..." she spoke softly, not wanting to ruin the moment between us, "Athena has agreed on this decision... She loves you as much as I do."

At her words, I couldn't help but smile sheepishly... Here she was. The girl of my life, the goddess of my dreams! I slowly brought my hands around her waist and hugged her to me as I sank in the mattress, my aching muscles reminding me that they still needed time to heal from my previous battle. As she snuggled closer to me, I couldn't help the little thought that crept into my mind...

Maybe I should fight her siblings more often... 


End file.
